We've buried Vic Fangio after games like Week 1's trip to Brazil and Week 4's beatdown vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We also gave him credit when that was due. The Philadelphia Eagles defense looked damn good vs. the New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
We'll even take it a step further. We liked what we saw vs. the Atlanta Falcons before Kirk Cousins burned our Birds during that final go-ahead drive. We know some of you hate to hear that.
Here's where we are with eight games behind us. We're curious about how these guys might perform vs. an elite opposing quarterback. Hell no Trevor Lawrence doesn't count. We've told you that dude was overrated for years.
That's another story for another day though. Let's talk about some predictions for this upcoming tussle with the Dallas Cowboys.
Here are a handful of bold predictions for the Philadelphia Eagles defense in Week 10 vs. the Dallas Cowboys.
We've had this one circled for a while. Philly has lost six straight in Arlington since their last win in 2017. They're 4-9 versus the Cowboys with Rayne Dakota Prescott as the starter. He's out which means the Birds get another extended look at Cooper Rush.
The Eagles have played Rush before (and beat him). That one was a 26-17 home win for Philadelphia in 2022. We're expecting another solid performance for Philly's defense, one that's a statistical monster.
Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun combine for 25 tackles and two TFLs.
The Eagles have two budding stars at the linebacker position. They've received passing grades weekly. Why in the world didn't the Saints deploy Zack Baun more often? That's the million-dollar question (pun intended).
There isn't a Birds fan walking that doesn't want Baun to stick around and be extended. Then, there's Nakobe Dean. He's improving weekly while Jeremiah Trotter Jr. waits in the wings.
This is the best we've felt about an Eagles LB corps in a while. Expect another showcase. Our prediction? Baun and Dean combine for 25 tackles in this one and two tackles for loss.
Two interceptions are grabbed, one by rookie Quinyon Mitchell.
We've gotten to the point where this one is more about hope than a bold prediction. Quinyon Mitchell could have easily grabbed an interception in every Eagles game this season except for the most recent game vs. the Jags.
This time, it FINALLY happens (we hope). Q snatches his first pick of his NFL career. Another of his defensive teammates adds another for good measure.
The Eagles hold Dallas to seven points or less in the second half.
One of the things we've enjoyed watching as the Eagles settle into Fangio's defense is seeing them come up big in big moments. We're going big here. We won't throw the 'shut out' theory out there, but we can see scenarios where Philly's defense holds Dallas to a touchdown or less during the final 30 minutes.
Philadelphia limits Dallas to 250 yards of offense or less.
You see it! We stand by it! Nothing about the Dallas offense scares us. Expect a few three and outs by the Cowboys, a few punts, a stop or two on fourth down conversion attempts.
Prepare for three Eagles sacks, one by Bryce Huff, and a double digit victory.
Expect to hear a lot about the Eagles' defense after this one. This game is going to provide some eye candy.
We expect fewer dominant moments than we saw vs. the Giants but enough to leave Birds fans happy. This one has all the trimmings: a Bryce Huff sack (one of three), constant pressure on Cooper Rush, and a double-digit victory to make the flight home enjoyable.